I don't find the results suprising given the advancement of safety technology over the last 50 years. The "good old days" when "cars were built from steel" is a myth.
My father-in-law (an ex-new car dealer) swears that any car that doesn't have a full frame is unsafe. I leave him speechless when I point out that Indy and F1 racing cars are of monocoque (frameless) construction...
Here are more details on the
crash and the
car.
There was a lot of controversy over this, with automotive conspiracy theorists stating in several
online forums that the '59 had been rigged...
IIHS says it was legit.
Note the fifty years worth of accumulated road dirt and rust flakes being knocked out of every nook and cranny of the '59 by the impact. Kind of like holding up your doormat and beating it with a stick...
Most of the cars that IIHS crash-tests are new, purchased from a dealer. I was born and raised about 30 miles south of their Vehicle Research Center. My wife worked for a local new car dealer that IIHS purchased a truck from to test - she got to go there and watch them crash-test it live some years back.
Edit: Unrelated - I just noticed my change in rank!
